Modern Knitting….a new spin on an old craft!

Posts tagged ‘tagging’

Just to keep you informed I have two of my interviews on Thursday this week, I’m very much looking forward to them. The first will be with Streetcolor at ten her time… which took me a whole day to realize was a totally different time in the eastern time zone where I am, thankfully it will be at one my time and I’ll be out of class ready to ask questions and learn as much as I can about Yarn Bombing. Then, a couple hours later, at three my time and twelve hers, I will be interviewing Leanne Prain who is the co-author of Yarn Bombing. I have also emailed Magda Sayeg‘s assistant, Karen McClellan and K1D2 questions. I know I’ve already talked about these interviews but now you can be super excited on Thursday evening, and really all through the week, to find out what I find out.

While Yarn Bombing has become an exciting and extremely interesting topic in my life I still need to find out, for my research paper, if Yarn Bombing is on the rise or soon to be forgotten among other fads and hobbies. It’s hard to think that something that yells for attention and can brighten up a person’s day will fall to the archives of local newspapers instead of becoming something revolutionary for the street art world. Will knitting be put back in its rocker or continue taking this skill to the streets? We will see!!!

Well, I’ve been a busy bee and have been researching and reading like crazy about Yarn Bombing or knit-fitti or Guerrilla knitting or whatever you’re fond of calling it. The point is I have four interviews lined up for this week! this means more information, more insight and more inspiration! We’ll find out information from Knitta Please, the woman credited for starting this art form, Streetcolor, a yarn bomber from Berkeley CA, KTC (Knit The City), a group of Yarn bombers based in the UK , and Leanne Prain, co-author of Yarn Bombing: The Art of Crochet and Knit Graffiti which was published in 2009. I am extremely excited to find out how these people feel about Yarn Bombing, what is going on with it and its future.

That was your update. BE EXCITED!!

A tree, Yarn Bombed, in a place near my home town

Also be aware that I may be conducting my own Yarn Bombing experiment soon to see what response I get in my neighborhood.

So, when I first started this project for Research and Resources I wanted to do the blog and thus my interviews, and literature review on modern knitting. What I didn’t realize then was that there are SO SO many modern things going on with knitting. The first one that really interested me and the one I’ll be sticking to for the remainder of my research will be Yarn Bombing, also known as guerrilla knitting, yarn graffiti, yarn storming and graffiti knitting. This new form of graffiti really is interesting and brings so many opportunities to liven up boring street signs, bike racks, statues and really anything.

I’m extremely excited to be interviewing some of these Yarn Bombing enthusiasts soon! Streetcolor has a really interesting blog that documents her tags, gives insight to why people yarn bomb, has links to articles about her and her work and has comments showing people’s reactions. I’ll also be interviewing a member of the Knitta Please team about their Yarn Bombing work and about Magda Sayeg, the leader and founder of the group, who has played a huge role in the Yarn Bombing movement.

What started for me as a small infatuation with knitting has turned into an extremely information rich adventure. We’ll be finding out where Yarn Bombing is going, if its growing or becoming a passing fad. We’ll find out what drives people to do this, what draws people in, how to go about starting, and how much like graffiti it really is (how illegal it is too). Hopefully this research project turns into something much bigger and really tells people what they want to know about Yarn Bombing.

If Yarn Bombing seems interesting to you I’d encourage you to pick up some knitting needles go to youtube or other sites like Lion Brand Yarn to learn how to knit. You could become a part of the Yarn Bombing street art and help it grow or at least get into it before its gone.

Yes, this blog is about knitting. But NO, it is not the knitting your grandma does in her rocker. This is a blog devoted to exploring what the world has to offer in knitting advancements. All over the world technology is advancing and becoming more entertaining and so are our old crafts. This first post will hopefully give you a taste of what’s to come in this blog. Maybe you’ll even be inspired to pick up some needles and start creating.Now, I’m sure you’ve seen graffiti out and about during your travels, under a bridge, through a tunnel, on an old building, or just on some random object. While some consider this vandalism a lot of people consider it art. Knitting has gone from a hobby making baby bonnets and cuddly blankets to an all out guerilla attack on all things cold and dingy. Knitting has become an art form that helps to express the color and joy within our cold industrial world.

People are going around knitting, not for babies, not for grandchildren and not even for a nice winter scarf. They are going out and knitting for our inanimate objects. To some this is vandalism, but unlike graffiti with spray paint all you have to to is cut the yarn and the object is free from its colorful covering.

During this blog I’ll be writing more about this interesting use of knitting needles, but if the excitement of modern art doesn’t get you antsy and jumping out to your nearest Michaels there is much more to come. In fact I have even found a website that reveals 100 modern knitting inspirations. To check it out yourself go to http://www.trendhunter.com/slideshow/knitting-yarn . Really, this blog is here to explore where knitting is headed or if it’s going no where fast. Keep checking back for more modern uses, interviews, surveys and more. If knitting is going to have a come back as something greater than your granny’s hobby this blog will find out the directions its going.